Chosen Of My Heart
by MakoStorm
Summary: A girl is sucked into the KH world and she has no memory of where she came from. Plus she's been chosen by a strange blade.Not keyblade. What adventures await this girl? Read to find out. Post KH2. Please read.RikuOC SoraKairi
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing Kingdom Hearts. (sob)

Warning: I know this chapter sucks but i'm putting the second chapter right up after it so please keep on reading. Please.

Chosen Of My Heart

Chapter 1: Chosen

"YAY! I love this part!" I said as the opening for KH2 came on the screen. My best (and video game hating) friend Jessica rolled her eyes as I jumped onto the couch next to her. "It's just a video game. Get over it already." She said as the movie played.

I looked at her, shocked. "Kingdom Hearts is not just a game. It's a part of life, a big part of mine." I waved the controller in her face. "Come on Blonde. I bet you'd like it if you gave it a try." She pushed the controller away. "No. Don't think so."

I rested my chin in my hand, elbow resting on my knee. "But seriously. Have you ever wanted to get out of the real world and go somewhere where you can do anything?" Jess shook her head. "Well I do. Why do you think I play Kingdom Hearts all the time? I imagine myself in it, away from the real world. It's a fantastic place."

Jess nodded her head. "I know. You tell me all the time. Now can't we do something else? You've played this game seventeen times since you got it. Do something healthy, like look at Chad Michael Murry." She looked away dreamily as she drooled.

I rolled my brown eyes. "No way. I'd much rather look at Riku and Axel." Pardon as I get my drool bucket.

All of the sudden the screen went blank right as Namine was enclosing Sora in that weird chamber. "What the heck!" I jumped off the couch and checked the plugs then hit restart on my PS2. Nothing happened. Jess laughed. "Hope it's fried." She said.

Suddenly a voice in my head said. **_' you have been chosen warriors.'_**

"Chosen? Chosen for what?" Jess asked confused.

Suddenly I was being sucked forward into the TV. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was Jessy's scared face beside me.

I groaned and opened my eyes. I was lying on a painted picture of Sora, Riku and Kairi. I got to my feet and looked around. Darkness surrounded the picture. I looked down and gasped. I looked different. I was now wearing baggy jeans and a dark blue tee shirt with a sky blue, short sleeved jacket over it. My hair was different too. It wasn't short anymore, it went to just below my shoulder blades and there were streaks of silver mixed in with the original brown. I was no longer chubby either I was petite. _That's something to tell the girls at home. Wanna be skinny? Just get sucked into your TV._ I thought.

I looked around again then put my hands to my mouth and yelled. "Jessy! Jessica!" I got no answer, then I heard the voice again.

'**_So much to do. So little time.'_**

I looked for the source of the voice.

'_**Take your time, don't be afraid, now step forward.'**_

I walked into the center of the picture.

The ground rumbled.

'_**Power sleeps within you.'**_

A sword appeared.

'_**If you give it form…'**_

The mage's staff appeared.

'_**It gives you strength.'**_

The shield appeared..

'_**What will you choose?"**_

Without hesitation I walked over to the shield and picked it up.

'_**The Guardian. Kindness and willingness to aid friends. Is friendship really important?'**_

I nodded. I had always valued friendship above everything else.

'_**Your path is set. But what will you choose to leave behind?'**_

I walked over and grabbed the sword.

'_**The Warrior. A sword of great strength and destruction. Is this what you choose?'**_

I nodded. I was strong enough and I could use the magic.

Suddenly a Dusk appeared in front of me. Two swords materialized in my hands. One was black while the other was white, both had spikes up and down the edges. "Whoa! This is so cool!"

All of a sudden the blades drew together into one. I didn't have time to think on it as the Dusk leapt at me. I threw my blade up into a clumsy guard, knocking it back then slashing at it. _This is way harder then the game._ I thought as I killed the Dusk.

A door appeared in front of me.

'_**Through this door lies the beginning of your journey. Are you ready?'**_

I clasped the handle and pulled it open.

I stepped through and found myself on a picture of Roxas and Sora and all their friends.

Then a Darkside Heartless appeared and the new blade appeared in my hands again.

A/N: Sorry guys. I tried to come up with a good way to write this battle scene and came up with nothing so I'm just gonna skip ahead to the end. Just think of how Sora beat Darkside in KH1 and you'll have it. Sorry again.

The Darkside faded away into nonexistence and I sat down, panting from the hard fight. _Definitely way harder then the game._

Suddenly the darkness billowed up around my feet. I shot up but my feet wouldn't budge. The darkness started to swallow me. I struggled then all of a sudden my mind went kinda fuzzy and I couldn't remember what I was doing. Where was I?

'_**Many dangers lie ahead chosen one.'**_

The voice filled my head.

'_**But do not be afraid for you hold the greatest weapon of all.'**_

Then the darkness completely swallowed me. I couldn't see or hear anything while I was hanging in this cold, empty void.

Then the light hit me and I closed my eyes tight. I felt myself falling. I hit water and tried to move my arms but my body wouldn't respond. My lungs started to burn then I heard splashing, like someone was swimming very fast, and I felt strong arms grab me as I blacked out.

A/N: First chapter sucks but please keep reading.


	2. New Friends

Chosen Of My Heart

Chapter 2: New Friends

"Is she alright?" A distant female voice asked.

"I don't know. I think so, she's breathing." A second voice said. "Where's Sora?"

"Over here!" I heard running footsteps getting closer. "I saw her falling."

My head felt all fuzzy but I vaguely noticed that I was in someone's arms and that I was soaking wet.

I groaned. "Look! She's waking up!" the female voice exclaimed.

I slowly opened my eyes, blinking them a few times, and saw a pair of aquamarine ones looking down at me with concern. (Three guesses who that is)

"Hey. You ok?" The owner of those eyes asked.

I groaned again and laid a hand against my head. "Can you please make everything stop spinning?" I asked, closing my eyes. When the dizziness passed I opened my eyes again.

"Who are you?" I asked, looking into the eyes above me. "And where…where am I?" A red headed girl came into view. "I'm Kairi." She grabbed the sleeve of a spiky, brown haired boy and pulled him beside her. "This is Sora and the one holding you is Riku."

I looked up at the silver haired boy holding me. "Ok. That explains who you are. But where am I? and how did I get here?"

"You're on Destiny Islands." Kairi said cheerfully. "As to how you got here we were hoping you could tell us."

Sora nodded. "Yeah. You fell like a meteor from the sky and landed in the ocean. Riku rescued you."

"Thanks for that." I told Riku. He nodded and replied. "You're welcome. Now what's your name and where are you from?"

?My name is Sarah. As to where I'm from…" I thought for a moment then shook my head. "I can't remember." Then suddenly I did remember something. Jessica.

"Jessica!" I gasped as memories of her flooded my head, I looked around frantically for her. "Was I the only one you saw?" I asked them. They nodded. "Oh no." tears came to my eyes.

"Who's Jessica?" Kairi asked.

"She's my best friend." I sniffled. "I remember we were together then all of a sudden we were separated. I don't remember how or even where we were." The tears fell. "I can remember her clearly but I can't remember anything else."

Kairi laid a hand on my arm. "Don't worry, we'll find her. Right now you need to rest and get out of those clothes. You can borrow some of my clothes until yours dry." She smiled warmly at me. "We're sleeping on this island tonight in one of the shacks. You can stay with us and we'll decide what to do in the morning."

I nodded and sniffled again. We headed down the beach with me still in Riku's arms. "You can put me down. I can walk." He placed me on unsteady feet.

I took three shaky steps forward and my legs gave out. I fell back and Riku caught me around the waist, picking me up again. "I think we'll get there faster if I carry you." We started walking again and I rested my head tiredly against his shoulder.

"Sorry to be a burden." I said quietly. Riku shook his head and smiled. "You're not. You aren't that heavy." I smiled and closed my eyes. Something about this boy made me feel safe. Secure. There was also this warm feeling I couldn't explain. _He is pretty hot._ I thought then mentally slapped myself._ Bad thoughts.__ You just met him stop thinking bad thoughts._

We arrived at a latter and climbed up, with my arms wrapped around his neck tightly and my eyes clamped shut. I didn't open them until we reached flat ground again.

"You can loosen your grip now." Riku said. "Oh!" I took my arms from around his neck. "Sorry."

He carried me into the little shack where Kairi was setting up a fourth sleeping bag. Riku sat me down on it then moved to his own not to far away.

Kairi dug through an overnight bag that was leaning against the wall and pulled out a pair of jeans and a pink shirt. "These should fit you." She said, handing them to me before shooing the boys out the door so I could change.

I made a face at the shirt. I hated pink. Hated it with a passion. But I shrugged, it was only gonna be until my clothes dried. I changed into the dry clothes and placed the wet ones in the corner to dry.

"Can we come in?" I heard Riku call from outside.

"Yeah."

The three friends entered and Sora went straight to the overnight bag and pulled out a sandwich. Kairi and Riku rolled their eyes. "That's Sora for you. Always thinking about his stomach." Riku said. Kairi giggled.

"What?" Sora said indignantly. "I was hungry." He looked at me, holding up a sandwich. "you want one?"

I nodded. "Sure." He handed me one then tossed one to Riku while grabbing another for Kairi. He walked over and sat next to Kairi, handing her the sandwich.

"It's like you guys were expecting me or something. You have extras of everything." I commented as I bite into the tuna sandwich.

"That's because our friends Tidus, Selphie and Wakka sometimes drop by and spend the night here too. And they always forget something or other, so we always have extras for them." Kairi said, taking a bite of hers.

"That's nice of you." I said, smiling. Orange light streamed through the doorway and I looked out at the setting sun. "Wow. It's beautiful." The others followed my gaze and smiled.

"Yeah." Kairi said, laying her head against Sora's shoulder. "It is." Sora blushed but then snaked his arm around her waist, pulling her closer.

I smiled at them then looked to Riku. Was it just me or did I see envy in his eyes as he looked at the couple.

A moment later I was sure I had imagined it, as he turned to look at the sun again all I saw was contentment.

The last sliver of sun vanished and the orange glow soon followed until the sky was dark and the stars twinkled.

I said goodnight then got in my sleeping bag, rolling over so I was facing the wall, my back to the others.

After a few minutes I heard Kairi whisper, "Is she asleep?" I closed my eyes. "Yeah. I think so." Sora answered.

I heard him sigh. "Wonder where she came from. She's obviously not from this world, but how did she get here without a Gummi Ship?"

"Don't know." Riku replied. "Maybe it's a sign. It's been a year since we defeated the Organization. We've had a year of peace, maybe someone wants to stir up trouble now."

"She arrived here like we did after defeating Xemnas, maybe she was in the world of darkness." Sora suggested.

"Well don't bug her about it now." Kairi said. "She must be worried about her friend and she can't remember her past. I know how that feels, I don't remember my life before I came here either and I was beyond worried while you two were gone."

"For now let's just get some sleep. We'll figure it out in the morning." Riku said. I heard shuffling as they all got into their sleeping bags. After a few minutes I heard their breathing even out and I knew they'd fallen asleep.

I sat up and looked around in the dimness. Sora and Kairi were sleeping next to each other, hands intertwined between them, on the other side of the shack and Riku was a few feet from the entrance, facing the wall.

I got shakily to my feet and walked towards the doorway, the wall supporting me. I walked as quietly as I could past Riku and out the door. I sat on the edge of the balcony-like walkway and swung my legs back and forth.

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, listening to the waves hitting the sand.

Millions of thoughts filled my head. Why was I here? Where was I from? Where could Jessy be? I opened my eyes and stared up at the moon. _Wherever she is, I'll find her. I have to._

I heard quiet footsteps behind me and Riku sat next to me. "Sorry if I woke you." I said without looking at him. He shook his head. "I wasn't asleep and I knew you weren't either." He replied as he put his legs over the edge beside mine.

"How could you tell?" He shrugged. "Your breathing. It wasn't even."

He turned his head to face me. "What were you thinking about?" He asked and I brought my head up, staring out at the moonlit ocean.

"Jessy. She's the only one I can remember. Do you know what it's like? To be separated from someone you deeply care about, afraid you'll never see them again?"

Riku nodded slowly. "Yeah. I was separated from Sora and Kairi for over a year."

"Oh? How?" I asked, curious.

He cast his eyes to the ocean and I saw pain in them. "Bad decisions."

"Oh." Assuming that was all I was gonna get from him I leaned back and closed my eyes again.

"It's a long story." He said after a short silence. I opened my eyes again and turned to him. "Will you tell me? I'm not in the mood to sleep right now." He nodded and started his story.

_Time lapse_

"After Sora read Kairi's letter the door to light opened and we were able to come back." Riku finished.

"Wow! You sure had a rough journey. What happened to the King, Donald and Goofy?" I asked.

"They went back to their home world. We got a letter about a week later saying best wishes and to tell us they had gotten home safely."

"Wow!" I said again then I looked at him. "Hey Riku? Did…did it hurt? When he took over your body like that?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Hurt like hell. You see now what I meant about bad decisions?" he looked at his feet. "I made so many bad decisions and mistakes. I'm not sure I should have come back."

I placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Of course you should have come back. I may have only known you for a few hours but I can tell you don't belong in darkness. So you made a few mistakes, everyone does. It's what makes us human." I could tell he was thinking about my words. I gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze. "Don't doubt yourself. The important thing is that you have a good heart."

Riku smiled and reached up, placing his hand over mine. I blushed and was thankful he wasn't facing me. "Thanks." He said and I smiled. "You're welcome."

We sat that way for a while, just enjoying each others company until I saw something lurking down on the ground. I leaned forward and saw a shadowy creature creeping across the sand. "Hey Riku." He looked at me and I pointed to where increasingly more of the things were gathering. "Look. What are those things?" He looked at the ground and gasped in surprise. He jumped to his feet and Way To Dawn materialized in his hand.

"No! They can't be back!" He pulled me up and ran into the shack. "SORA! KAIRI! UP!" The two sleeping teens both jumped about ten feet into the air and looked at Riku and I. "What is it Riku?" Sora asked, getting to his feet and helping Kairi to hers.

"They're back!" Riku said, anger lacing his voice. "The Heartless are back!" Sora and Kairi's eyes widened and the Keyblade appeared in Sora's hand. We ran back out onto the walkway. The Heartless had multiplied into the thousands.

A/N: So what did you think? Should i just delete it? I know it's kinda boring but the next chapter is a good one so please keep reading. I've done chapter stories before and i don't think this one is as good as my FF VII one but i posted it anyway. Please be honest with me on how it is k?


	3. I'll Protect You

Chapter 3: I'll Protect You

Kairi gasped. "It's happening again. Our home is being over run." She whispered, tears forming as the Heartless kept multiplying.

"No!" Riku snapped and we turned to look at him. "I won't let it happen! Not again!" Then he leapt off the edge and right into the middle of the Heartless. "Riku!" I shouted after him. I tried to follow but fell to my knees, I still hadn't gotten my strength back yet.

Sora knelt next to me. "Don't know why we didn't think of the before." He said. "Cure." He muttered and a green light enshrouded me and I felt me strength returning. I stood and without second thought I jumped after Riku.

Two blades suddenly materialized in my hands and as soon as I hit the ground I started swinging like crazy.

Riku was ahead of me, slashing and blocking the deadly claws. I came back to back with him. "That was a really stupid thing to do you know." I commented as I blocked one of the shadows. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

He slashed through a heartless that was about to jump me. "I could ask you the same thing." He indicated the swords, "Where'd those come from?"

I shrugged and continued slashing. "Don't know. They just appeared." I heard a shout behind us and looked to see Sora and Kairi running towards us. Kairi was swinging a pretty but deadly looking blade.

"We're not letting you guys have all the action." Sora said, stopping next to me. He grinned then jumped into the heartless, leaping and twisting in a series of deadly moves.

I snorted. "Show off." I muttered. I heard a shout and turned to see Riku had moved further away as I was distracted by Sora and was now being jumped by at least ten heartless all at once.

"Riku!" I shouted. Then my blades glowed and came together to form one. A voice filled my head. **_Worldblade._** I looked at the weapon. "Worldblade?" Riku shouted again and brought me back to myself. I leapt into action. I leapt from heartless to heartless, using their heads as stepping stones to reach Riku. I slashed at the creatures on top of him. "GET OFF!" I shouted as I wiped the last one out. I helped Riku to his feet. "You owe me one." I said, grinning at him. "Making me save you sorry butt." He smirked but didn't reply.

"SORA!" Kairi screamed. I looked around in time to see Sora knocked out by a big, stone colored creature. "What is that thing?" I asked as we ran towards Sora. "Berserker Nobody!" Riku replied. "Big, dangerous and they pack a punch!"

We ran as fast as we could through the heartless in an attempt to reach Sora. Kairi's hands were tied fighting the heartless around her and she couldn't get away.

"NO!" Riku shouted as an unconscious Sora was dragged into a dark portal. The portal closed as we reached it. Then the Berserker came after us.

Just before it reached us a beam of light shot from my blade and went through the nobody, destroying it.

"Whoa! Cool!" I exclaimed but my excitement didn't last long as four more Berserkers appeared. "Awww man. Don't they ever quit?" I groaned. Riku grabbed my arm and ran, dragging me along.

"We can't fight the Berserkers and all these heartless at the same time! We need to get Kairi and get to safety." He said as the creatures gave chase.

Kairi had just finished killing the last heartless around her when Riku grabbed her. "Come on! We need to get off the island! We need to get to the mainland!" He shouted.

"What about Sora?!" Kairi yelled, looking behind her at the advancing nobodies.

"There's no time! You can't help him Kai! We have to go now!" Riku shouted, also noticing the advancing nobodies.

"No! I won't leave without Sora!" she tried to wrench her arm from his grasp but he just tightened his grip. We had stopped now and the nobodies, joined by heartless now, were getting ever closer.

"Damn it Kairi! Don't you get it?! He's gone! They took him!" Riku shouted at her. Tears came to Kairi's eyes and I walked past her, Worldblade held in front of me, ready to face the oncoming creatures.

"Kairi please listen to Riku." I felt her gaze lock onto me. "We'll get him back. I promise. But right now we have to get away from here." I said in a voice as gentle as I could get it under the circumstances. I swung the Worldblade and smashed the first nobody to the ground. "We're no use to him dead!"

"All right." I heard tears in her voice as she allowed Riku to lead her away.

I smashed one more then turned and ran with the others away from the nobodies. "Then let's get outta here!"

We ran down the beach to the small dock. All the boats were smashed and the sea had turned pitch black. Riku pointed towards the mainland and Kairi gasped. It was completely engulfed by darkness.

"Now what do we do?! There's nowhere safe to go! This whole world is being over run!" I shouted frantically.

There was a crash behind us and I turned to see the island being ripped apart. "Riku. What are we gonna do?" I asked, fear now entering my voice. I was scared now. With nowhere to go we were sitting ducks and we couldn't up against all theses creatures forever. Riku never answered my question.

The Heartless and the Nobodies made their way towards us. We held our blades in a ready position. Then all of a sudden the creatures stopped their advancement.

"What?" Riku questioned, looking around at them all.

Suddenly a dark portal popped up in front of us and a black cloaked figure stepped out.

"The Organization!" Riku and Kairi gasped.

The cloaked figure laughed. It was hard and cold and sent shivers down my spine. The figure threw back his hood and we were faced with a silver haired man with piercing eyes and a lopsided, X shaped scar on his face.

"Saix!" Riku growled and I sucked in a breath. Riku had told me about this psycho. "You can't be here! Sora killed you! I saw it!" Riku shouted.

Saix laughed again. "I was reborn. And now with the Keyblade wielder out of the way, nothing can stop us from achieving our goal." He snapped his fingers and nobodies appeared holding a still unconscious Sora.

"Sora!" Kairi yelled, running towards him with her blade at the ready. I snagged her arm. "Don't! You don't know what Saix will do!"

"A wise decision." Saix chuckled. "I could kill the boy now if I wished." He said, holding his weapon threateningly over Sora's head.

"No! Please don't!" Kairi shouted, Riku looked furious and I could tell it was taking all his will power not to go at Saix and hack him to pieces.

"I won't." Saix said calmly. "He will live for now. We need him to make sure you don't get in the way. But mark my words: if you interfere in any way he will die."

He pointed his weapon at me. "While I'm here I might as well take the Worldblade wielder as well. You're a nuisance better dealt with now."

Riku pushed me behind him. "Over my dead body!" He growled.

Saix smirked. "If that's what it takes." He leapt forward but was suddenly knocked back by two flaming, spiked weapons. I looked up to where the weapons had come from and saw another cloaked figure standing on the roof of one of the shacks. The weapons returned to his hands and he twirled them around his fingers in a cocky manner. Saix growled. "Traitor. Traitor to your own cause."

Riku had finally had enough and ran at the nobodies holding Sora, slicing through them. Saix started after him but was hit with the fleming weapons again. The cloaked figure jumped and landed next to me as the weapons sailed gracefully back to his hands.

"Who are you?" I asked. He threw off his hood and a red head with small tattoos under emerald eyes was looking at me, smirking. "Name's Axel. Got it memorized?" I nodded then twirled my blade. "Well Axel, wanna help me kick this psycho's ass?" I indicated Saix.

Axel grinned and spun one of his weapons around his finger, turning it into a wheel of flame before throwing it at Saix. "I'd love to."

We jumped at him. Saix had dodged the flaming weapon and was now opening a portal. "Where do you think you're going coward?!" I shouted. He glared at me as the portal started to close. "Believe me, this is not over." Then he was gone.

"Damn it!" I shouted, stabbing my blade into the ground. "He got away!"

"Thanks for stating the obvious." Axel commented sarcastically. I glared at him.

"Sora!" I turned to see the nobodies dragging the Keyblade master away yet again. "Oh no you don't!" I shouted, yanking my blade from the ground and pointing it at the nobodies. The beam of light shot from it again and pierced the creatures through. Sora fell to the ground with a thud.

Kairi skidded to a stop next to him and got on her knees.

"Is he alright?" Riku asked, staring down at the two with concern. Riku had gotten rid of the creatures that had been around us but I knew more would probably appear soon.

Kairi nodded. "I think so. He's jut knocked out and he has a really nasty bump. He'll definitely feel that in the morning." She rubbed the back of his head tenderly. Axel walked over and picked him up, throwing him over his shoulder.

"We need to get out of here now. The nobodies will be back soon." Axel held out his hand and a portal, similar to the one Saix had used, appeared.

He helped Kairi to her feet. "So let's go." He said before walking through. Kairi looked at us before following without hesitation.

Riku started to follow but stopped and looked back when he realized I hadn't budged. "What's wrong?" He asked. I shook my head. I didn't want to admit that I was scared of the darkness, especially not after Kairi had gone in without hesitation or fear.

Riku must have seen the fear in my eyes because he took a step closer and held out his hand. "Do you trust me?" He asked gently. Our eyes locked and I nodded. "Then don't be afraid." I hesitated then placed my hand in his. He pulled me to his side and wrapped an arm securely around my waist. "Don't worry." He whispered in my ear. I shivered. "No matter what lies ahead, I'll protect you." I nodded, closing my eyes tight as we walked through together.

A/N: So is the story worth keeping posted at all? I only got two reviews for my last chapter so i wasn't sure. Please review and tell me what you think.


	4. Ticklish

Chapter 4: Ticklish

I opened my eyes when Riku nudged me. I looked around. "Where are we?" I asked. We were surrounded by old fashioned buildings and we appeared to be standing in a town square. I noticed how the townsfolk shot quick glances at us before walking away quickly, as if frightened.

"Radiant Garden." Axel answered. "You guys have friends here last I checked so I brought you here."

"Hey!" A voice cried and we looked up to one of the rooftops to see a girl with short black hair and wielding a giant shuriken standing there.

"Yuffie!" Kairi called in greeting, waving at the girl.

Yuffie jumped from the building and landed in front of us, a cheerful smile on her face. "Hey there!" She eyed Kairi. "Wow Kairi. You had one heck of a growth spurt. You're as tall as me now." She noticed Sora. "What happened?" she asked, smile fading.

Kairi and Riku looked to the ground. "Destiny Islands was attacked. That's why we're here." I said, placing my hand on Riku's shoulder. His arm was still around my waist and he seemed to realize it. He pulled it back quickly and for some reason I felt slightly disappointed.

"Come on then. I'm sure Merlin will have something for him. He'll be up and around in no time." Yuffie said cheerily trying to lift the mood a little.

We nodded and followed Yuffie through town. My hand fell from Riku's shoulder as he walked further ahead and I got a glimpse of his guilt-ridden face. I sighed and walked faster, matching his pace till I was side by side with him. I leaned closer, offering silent comfort.

He looked over at me, meeting my comforting eyes then shook his head. "I don't deserve the comfort." He muttered, moving away from me.

I cast my eyes down, staring at the ground as we walked. What did he mean? How could he not deserve at least a little comfort after the fight he put up to save his home?

"We're here!" Yuffie said, opening the door to the small house. We walked in and were greeted by three pairs of eyes. One pair belonged to a blonde guy who looked to be in his late thirties. He was seated at a large computer in the corner of the room. The second belonged to a woman in her mid twenties with brown hair that was pulled up and wearing a pink dress. The third was a tall man in his mid twenties with a scar like a slash mark on his face who was leaning against the far wall, arms crossed.

"Hey guys! Look who I found!" Yuffie said.

"Hi Aerith." Kairi said, waving to the girl. "Hello Leon. Cid."

"Kairi! Is that you?! My goodness it's been so long! How have you been?!" Aerith asked, walking over and giving Kairi a hug.

"Good as can be expected." Kairi said sadly.

"I see Sora got himself into trouble again." Leon said. "You can lay him over there." He indicated the one bed in the room. Axel laid the teen on the bed then left him to Kairi who had sat down next to him.

"So what happened?" Cid asked. Yuffie answered for us. "Their home was attacked. Again."

Leon looked at Riku. "From what Sora's told us I take it you're Riku, right?" Riku nodded. Leon shifted his gaze to me. "And you are?" he asked. "I'm Sarah. A friend."

Yuffie smiled. "Well it's nice to meet you. As you may have guessed from Kairi's greeting I'm the great ninja Yuffie. The flower girl is Aerith. The thick headed one with the scar is Squall and the old dude at the computer is Cid."

"Hey! You little brat! I'm not that old!" Cid shouted at her. Yuffie glared at him. "You're almost forty! That's pretty old in my book old man!" she shouted back.

I giggled and even Riku showed signs of a smirk.

Leon flicked Yuffie in the back of the head. "The name's Leon and who are you calling thick headed?"

I laughed as Yuffie whirled around to punch him in the arm only to fall on her face when he dodged. It got a small snigger from Riku.

"Hey. I hate to break up the fun but do you happen to have anything for Sora?" Kairi asked from her spot on the bed.

Aerith nodded, going over to a cabinet and taking out a bottle of potion. She handed it to Kairi. "You give it to him. Something tells me he'll accept it from you better than me." She smiled knowingly at Sora whose head was resting in Kairi's lap. Kairi blushed, nodding.

I walked over as Kairi poured the green liquid down Sora's throat slowly. He groaned and his eyes cracked open. He looked up at Kairi. "Kai…ri…" He said weakly. "I'm here Sora. I'm looking after you." Kairi said softly. "Thanks…Kai…" He whispered softly before fading back into unconsciousness.

"So…he'll be alright?" I asked Aerith. She nodded. "Yes. He just needs to sleep. He should wake up again soon." I nodded, sighing in relief.

I heard the door open and close and turned around. "Riku?" He had left, without even giving an explanation. "Let him go." Kairi said, looking down at Sora as she stroked his hair gently.

"Kairi?" I placed a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?" she shrugged. "Nothing. I'm just saying let him go. Let him sulk all he wants." Her voice was colder then the voice I was used to.

I sighed. "I'll be back later." I said, walking out the door in pursuit of Riku.

I looked all over town for him but couldn't find him anywhere. I called his name but received no answer. Finally I decided to try the rooftops. It wasn't long before I found him. He sat on top of a building on the edge of town. He sat there, one leg hanging over the edge with the other drawn up, his arm resting on top of his knee.

I sat down next to him. "Hey? You all right?" I asked gently.

"My home was just over run do you think I'm all right?" He snapped. I looked away, drawing my knees up and wrapping my arms around them. He sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap." He wrapped an arm around my shoulders in a friendly way. "It's just everything that's happened. It's all a bit overwhelming and I can't help but feel that it's my fault."

I looked up at him, confused. "How is it your fault?"

"If I was just a little stronger. If I had just fought a little harder. Could I have stopped it? Could I have saved our friends? Our families?" He clenched his fists. "If I had just been better! I could have stopped this! Maybe if I'd been more alert I could have prevented it! Damn it all! Damn the Organization! Damn my weakness!" He slammed his fist down angrily.

I shook my head, grabbing his left fist and gently prying his fingers open. "Stop doing this Riku. Stop blaming yourself. It wasn't your fault." I clasped his now open hand in mine, rubbing his palm with my thumb gently, trying to get him to relax. "You are not weak. You were the one who put yourself In front of me to keep me from harm. You were the one who went straight into battle to protect your home and the things you love. That isn't weakness to me. That's courage." His hand finally relaxed as I finished. "If love is a weakness then it is a good one."

His hand closed around my smaller one. "Still wish I had fought harder." I shook my head. "You fought hard enough Riku, you did everything you could."

Riku sighed. "Kairi's mad at me, huh?" I nodded. "Yeah. I'd say she is." He groaned. "I've never yelled at her like that before. Never in the whole time I've known her. The only time I ever yelled was when I screamed at her to run, after she got her heart back." He fell back and laid flat on the roof, looking up at the darkening sky. "Hope she can forgive me." I fell back beside him. "Of course she can." I smacked him playfully in the chest. "Do you really think a princess of heart can hold a grudge for long?" He shrugged. "Kairi might be able to." I rolled my eyes. "Oh just go apologize!" I exclaimed, aiming another smack at him. He caught my wrist so I used my other hand, he caught that one too. He rolled over so I was under him, staring up into his aquamarine eyes. "This is why girls can never win against us guys." He said, grinning.

I snorted. "Yeah but what you guys gain in strength you lack in brain power." I said, rolling my eyes then I grinned slyly. "You're forgetting one thing." He smirked. "Oh yeah? And what's that?" I hooked my leg behind his right knee and used my other knee to ram him in the ribs flipping us over so we switched positions. "Girls can play dirty." I laughed down at him.

I squealed as he decided to use the same trick on me and I was very grateful that it was a big roof or I think we would have fallen by now. He rubbed his fingers over the spot where he had rammed my side and I gave a small gasp, squirming a little. "What is it?" He asked worriedly. "I didn't hurt you did I?" I shook my head. "No I'm just…" I giggled as his fingers lightly ran over my side. "…ticklish." I finished.

Bad idea. "Oh really?" He asked slyly and my eyes widened. "No. Riku don't. Please

do-." My sentence quit in a torrent of giggles as Riku attacked my side, running his fingers up and down. I laughed harder, pushing on his chest, begging and pleading for him to stop. Tears came to my eyes as I laughed harder and my side started to ache. Finally, after a few minutes, he stopped and I relaxed, breathless, beneath him.

"Do you surrender?" he asked. I shook my head and he placed a hand on my side threateningly. "Ok ok I give up. Just please, no more tickling." I begged desperately, Riku laughed and I joined him, making the ache in my side worse.

"You sure know how to make someone feel better." He said, rolling off and laying beside me again. "I haven't laughed like that in a while."

I smiled. "I'm glad. You deserve to laugh like that every once in a while." I looked up at the now dark sky. "It's strange. I've only known you for a day yet it feels like I've known you my whole life. I feel like I can trust you with anything."

He smiled. "I feel the same way. I trust you the same as Sora and Kairi." He stood, helping me to my feet.

Our eyes locked and I stared into his aquamarine ones._ I just met him but I've never had this warm, tingling feeling in my chest before. The feeling I get whenever I look at him._ A bird squawked, disturbing the moment.

I shook myself then grabbed his hand and dragged him to the ladder, trying to hide the color on my cheeks. "OK, after that lovely moment I think it's time you go apologize to Kairi."

Riku snorted. "I don't need the ladder." He said before leaping over the side and landing on his feet gracefully. "Show off!" I shouted. "Just like Sora!"

"Come on. Jump. I'll catch you." He called up.

I shook my head. "Are you crazy?! I'm not jumping! It's too high!"

He rolled his eyes. "I did it didn't I?"

"Yeah well I'm starting to question if you and Sora are human." I said back.

"You're right. We're aliens. Now will you jump?" I stared down at him. "Didn't you just say you could trust me with anything?" He asked. "Oh sure. Make me feel guilty." I muttered then I sighed. "Promise you'll catch me?" He nodded. "Promise."

"Ok. Here goes nothing." I closed my eyes tight and jumped; it seemed like an eternity before I landed safely in Riku's arms. "See? That wasn't so bad was it?" He asked, setting me on my feet.

"No but what was wrong with using the ladder?" He pointed. "Loose bolt. To dangerous to climb down." He said. "Oh and jumping off the roof isn't dangerous at all." I said sarcastically as we headed back to Merlin's.

A/N: Well there you go. Another chapter. I really didn't expect people to like this story that much, but I guess everyone's proved wrong at some point in their life. Thanks for the reviews they make me happy.  


	5. Explanations

Chapter 5: Explanations

Leon and the others were gone when we got back and Kairi hadn't moved from Sora's side. She was in the exact same spot we had left her in except now she was asleep, her head laid back against the headboard and Sora's head still in her lap with her hand on his hair.

I noticed Sora had a goofy grin on his face and I walked over and poked him in the shoulder. "You can open your eyes now faker." I said, smirking. He opened one eye, focusing it on me. "I knew it. How long have you been awake?" he close his eyes again. "Only about ten minutes. I didn't want to wake Kairi up by moving so I stayed here." I shook my head. "Bet that's not the only reason you stayed." He blushed.

"Come on Sora. Get up. We have to contact Mickey and tell him what's going on." Riku said from behind me. Sora groaned and sat up, placing a hand to his head as he swayed back and forth. "Whoa. Got up way to fast." He said dizzily. He steadied after a few minutes and took his hand away, looking around. "Since this isn't home I take it Destiny Islands is gone?" I nodded sadly. He sighed and his head sagged. "So how did we end up at Merlin's?"

"To make a long story short Axel brought us." Riku answered. Sora's eyes widened as he looked up. "Axel! How? He's dead!" Riku shook his head. "Don't know but Saix is back too. It seems the Organization was reborn somehow." Sora placed his head in his hands. "So everything we did… was for nothing?"

"I don't think so. We did stop Xemnas and saved the worlds didn't we? I don't think that's nothing." Riku said. "Come on, let's talk to Axel. He can tell us what's going on."

Sora nodded and turned to wake Kairi. "Kairi." He shook her a little. "Kairi wake up." She moaned and opened her eyes. She gasped when she saw Sora, throwing her arms around his neck. "Oh Sora I was so worried." He smiled, wrapping his arms around her. "I'm alright Kai."

"Hey Kairi?" Riku asked.

"Hm?" she looked at him.

"Sorry about yelling at you back at the island." He scratched the back of his head and looked at his feet.

"It's ok." She smiled.

Riku sighed in relief, giving a small smile back.

The two teens stood up from the bed. Sora staggered a bit but was otherwise fine.

"I see you're back from the dead."

We turned to see Axel leaning against the wall.

"Axel. How are you alive? I was there when you died." Sora asked.

"Contact that king friend of yours and I'll explain everything." Axel replied, motioning to the computer. "I have a feeling you'll need his help."

Sora shook his head. "I have no idea how to work it. Do you Kairi?" she shook her head.

Riku sighed. "You're both hopeless." He said, sitting down at the computer. I walked up behind him and leaned over his shoulder to look at the screen as he typed. "I take it you now how to work this thing?" He nodded. "Yeah, Diz taught me."

"Why don't we just wait for Cid?" Sora asked. "I don't want to know what he'll do to us if he finds us messing with his computer."

"He went off with the Wizard and the others to help with something in town. He won't be back till later." Axel said from his position at the wall.

"I got it." Riku said, hitting a couple more keys. A picture popped up to reveal two furry faces.

"Chip! Dale! Long time no see!" Sora greeted, looking over Riku's other shoulder. "Sora!" the chipmunks cried happily, jumping up and down. "Great to hear from ya pal!" dale said.

"Hey guys, is Mickey around?" Riku asked. The chipmunks nodded. "Yep. In fact His Majesty is right outside, looking at the new Gummi Ship." Chip replied.

"We need to speak to him. It's important." They nodded and ran out of view.

They returned a few seconds later with the mouse king at their side. "Hiya Riku. Sora. How ya been?"

"Not so good Your Majesty." Sora said sadly. "The heartless and nobodies took over Destiny Islands."

"Oh no!"

"That's not the worst of it." Riku said, shaking his head. "The Organization's back."

The mouse's face held a look of shock. "What! How?!"

"We don't know. Axel told us to contact you and then he would explain everything."

"Tell him to go ahead, I'm listening."

"Fine, but you better listen carefully because I don't wanna have to repeat myself." Axel sat down in one of the chairs located around the table in the middle of the room. "You know how nobodies are made from darkness? Well Xemnas came up with a plan to make sure we were reborn from that darkness if we were, by some miracle, defeated.

"There is a creature that lies in darkness. It has no name that we could find and it holds extraordinary power. Xemnas unsealed the creature from the dark realm and wanted to use it as a weapon at first but it could not be controlled. So he confined it at the very bottom of the Castle That Never Was. It is pure darkness and somehow the dark powers it holds can bring us back. I wish I could explain it but I don't really know how it does it. Xemnas kept it as a back up plan just in case. But the plan back fired. Instead of bringing back the entire Organization it was only able to bring back three; Me, Saix and Xaldin.

He sighed. "I was attacked as soon as Saix spotted me. I was a traitor to the Organization. Anyway the point is that as long as the creature resides outside the realm of darkness, Saix will keep coming back. Personally I'm glad it's Saix and not Xemnas."

"So how do we stop the creature?" I asked.

"That's where you come in. Legend states that the monsters can only be sent back and sealed into the realm of darkness by the wielder of the Worldblade, the blade of the two worlds, light and darkness. That's why Saix attacked your world. He wanted the Keyblade wielder out of the way and he wanted to kill you." He pointed to me.

"Gee. Looks like you got another quest ahead." Mickey said. "I'll round up Donald and Goofy and we'll be there in a few days."

"Really!" Sora exclaimed.

"Of course. You don't think we'd let you do it on your own did ya? I'll also look in our library and see what I can find out about the Worldblade."

Sora smiled. "Thanks Your Majesty."

Mickey nodded. "Welp. I better go round up the two knuckleheads. See ya in a few days."

We nodded and the screen went blank.

"So now what?" I asked, sitting down in another chair.

"Now we wait." Riku replied. "We'll think up a plan once they arrive."

I nodded. "I'm gonna go take a walk. See ya in a bit." I said, before getting up and walking out the door. The night had cooled and the air felt good after the heat of the house.

I heard the door open again and Riku caught up with me. "Mind if I come?" I shook my head. "Not at all." We walked in silence for a few minutes. "Guess I'm the one who needs to comfort you now huh?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Well considering I just found out I'm the only one who can stop some evil monster and there's a psycho trying to kill me, I'd say yes." He draped an arm casually around my shoulders. "Don't worry. You have friends here. We'll help you out and don't forget about what I said about protecting you."

I smiled. "How is it possible that I've been here for a little over a day and already I have three best friends?"

Riku shrugged, smiling. "Anything's possible I guess."

I closed my eyes, leaning against him a little as we walked.

A/N: There ya go another chapter. This one's sorta just a filler so it wasn't very exciting but there will be action in next chap so expect it. Thanks for all the reviews everyone, they make me happy. : )


	6. Reunion And Invasion

Chapter 6 : Reunion And Invasion

Over the next few days my new friends and I helped Leon and the gang around the town, helping them restore Radiant Garden to it's former beauty.

I was no longer wearing Kairi's clothes since Merlin had somehow been able to get my old ones through magic.

At the moment the jacket was off as I helped the guys lift a heavy piece of metal from the ground. They had insisted the girls just let them do it but I was too stubborn to listen. Leon said I was too much like Yuffie who was also helping us out. As we leaned the metal against the wall it sliced my palm and I hissed.

I leaned against the wall and examined the cut. It was a shallow slice but it still hurt like hell and had started to bleed. A hand grabbed mine gently and I looked up to see Riku. He took a cloth from his pocket and ripped off a strip, wrapping it around my hand. "Thanks." I said, wincing as he tied it off. "Sorry about that." He said, noticing my discomfort. "Sword hands you know." I smiled. "It's ok."

"Hey look!" Sora called, pointing up at the sky. A strange ship was coming in for a landing.

"Looks like Mickey and the others are here." Riku commented as the ship landed and the ramp lowered.

A duck and a big dog ran out of the ship and tackled Sora to the ground and I giggled. Kairi was greeted by a yellow dog who jumped up and began to lick her face as she laughed. Finally Riku was greeted by the little king.

I stayed back as they laughed and greeted each other, not wanting to intrude on their reunion. Riku noticed and walked over and grabbed my hand, leading me to the rest of the group. "Guys I'd like you to meet a friend of ours." He put me in front of him. "This is Sarah." I smiled shyly, looking at the ground. "Hello."

I was instantly greeted by the yellow dog who decided it would be nice to sit on me. I found myself flat on the ground with the dog sitting on my stomach, staring down at me with It's tongue lolling out. Kairi giggled and Sora and Riku laughed.

"Pluto! Come on pal get off." The king said, giving the dog a light push so he'd get off. "Sorry about that. He gets kinda excited when he meets new people."

"It's alright." I said, scratching the dog's head. "I think it's sweet." Pluto licked my face and I laughed. "It's nice to meet you too boy."

"Well now that you've met Pluto let me introduce the rest of us. I'm Mickey king of Disney Castle. Over there is Donald, he's the shorter one, and Goofy."

I nodded my head in greeting. "Hello. I've heard a lot about you all."

Goofy helped me to my feet. "Well it's nice to meet ya Sarah." He said before promptly tripping over his own feet and falling to the ground.

We all laughed. "Hyuck. Guess I should watch my step." Goofy said, Laughing along with us.

"Your Majesty? Did you find anything in your library about the monster or the Worldblade?" Sora asked.

Mickey nodded, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a few folded pieces of paper. "We did find something in one of our old books about it." He handed the papers to Riku. "Those papers support everything Axel said about the Worldblade and the creature and about the wielder being able to lock it away. It also says the wielder can control it and has information on the blade itself."

"What's it say about the blade Riku?" I asked, looking over his shoulder.

"Says the wielder has the power over light and darkness and that the blade only chooses a master when the worlds are in great need of it's power. Only five masters have been chosen in the last four thousand years."

"Is that it? Nothing saying how to use it or unlock it's power?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. The rest we pretty much already know."

I sighed. "Wish I knew more about this thing." I said, summoning the blade to my hand. Ever since it had gone from two blades to one I hadn't been able to separate it.

"Why did it choose me as it's master anyway? I'm afraid of darkness, so why choose me to control it?"

Riku shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe for the same reason the Keyblade chose a bonehead like Sora. You have a strong heart."

"Hey! Who you calling a bonehead!" Sora cried indignantly.

Kairi and I giggled.

Suddenly there was an explosion that shook the ground. I stumbled and found myself on the ground once again.

"What's going on now?!" Leon shouted angrily, grabbing his gunblade and heading in the direction of the explosion. Cloud and Yuffie followed.

Riku helped me up and we started to follow when Dusks appeared around us. "Aww man! Not again!" I shouted as I swung at one. "Can't they just leave us alone for at least a little while?!"

We heard a laugh and looked around. A portal opened and a girl around my age stepped out. "We will keep hunting you Worldblade master. Saix wants you dead and I will make sure that wish is fulfilled."

The girl had black hair that fell down her back and her eyes were crimson. Her skin was pale like she had never stepped foot into the sun before and she was wearing an organization robe. She wielded a long sword with razor sharp spikes up both sides and a flaming tip.

"Who are you?" Riku shouted.

"My name is of no importance. All that matters now is killing the Worldblade wielder."

I held my blade in a defensive position and studied the girl carefully. She seemed familiar somehow. Her posture and the way she held herself, confident, like she could defeat anything that got in her way. It dawned on me and I gasped. "Jessy!"

The girl's eyes widened and she took a few startled steps back. "How do you know my name?"

"Don't you remember? It's me. It's Sarah. We're best friends remember?"

She glared at me. "I do not know you. Saix would have told me if i knew you." She swung her blade at my head and I brought my blade up. "Jessy please try to remember!"

Riku started forward. "No!" I snapped at him. "Let me handle this on my own!"

Jessy twirled her blade behind her back and swung it towards my side. I blocked the blade and leapt out of the way. "Snap out of it!"

I didn't attack. I just defended. I didn't want to hurt her. Her attacks were beginning to wear me out after a few minutes though and my movements were getting slower.

She swung and I couldn't get my blade up in time. I closed my eyes and braced myself. This_ is it. _I thought, then the clang of clashing swords was heard and I opened my eyes to see Riku standing there, blocking with Way To Dawn.

He shoved Jessy back and swung, slicing her shoulder open. She gasped and backed away, placing a hand to the bleeding wound as she opened a portal and disappeared.

I fell to my knees and stared blankly ahead. "Jessy…"

Riku knelt next to me. "Are you alright?" I didn't answer. "Sarah? Sarah say something." I still didn't reply, I couldn't. My brain had registered what he said but I couldn't form words to reply.

He sighed and picked me up gently, holding me bridal style. "You guys go help out Leon and the others. I'll stay here and take care of her." They nodded.

As we parted Riku looked down at me with concern. "Sarah?" I whimpered a little, snuggling deeper into his arms. He tightened his hold around me and I closed my eyes as exhaustion hit me, falling into an uneasy sleep.

0

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I woke up in the bed at Merlin's, unsure how long i had been out. I lay there silently, facing the wall, thinking about the event that had just occurred. I knew what had happened in my head but my heart didn't want to accept. I sat up and drew my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around them as tears came to my eyes. I buried my face into my knees and let the tears fall.

Once I started crying I couldn't stop. I don't now how long I sat there, wallowing in my pain. I felt someone sit on the bed next to me and strong arms wrapped around me gently.

I looked up to see Riku. "Riku…" I whispered as I leaned into his embrace, burying my face in his chest. "It's not fair!" I sobbed, clutching his shirt in my fists. He rubbed my back soothingly. "I know it's not. I know." He agreed in a gentle whisper. He just sat there and held me as I sobbed, offering silent comfort as his other hand stroked my hair.

Finally my streaming tears slowed to a trickle and Riku lifted my head, wiping the tears away with his hand. I looked into his beautiful aquamarine eyes as he bent his head. He hesitated then his lips met mine and I closed my eyes, returning the kiss willingly.

I gave a small smile when we broke apart. "Does that mean you like me or is that just your way of making me feel better?" I joked, my voice soggy. He smiled. "Both."

I sniffled. "Where is everyone?"

"Cleaning up. Saix was here, he and your friend retreated for some reason but they'll be back. The others told me to stay and look after you, not like they'd have to tell me twice though."

I clenched my fist, my nails digging into my palms. "Saix." I ground out. "He's to blame for everything. He turned Jessica to darkness. I'll get him. Next time I see him he's going down."

The door opened and Yuffie walked in. "Great you're awake! We were beginning to worry about you." She gave me a sympathetic look. "Sora and Kairi told us what happened."

I didn't say anything in reply; I just leaned against Riku, resting my head on his shoulder.

"So how do you feel?" Yuffie asked before giving a nervous laugh. "Guess that's kind of a stupid question huh?" she scratched the back of her head nervously.

"It's ok Yuf." I assured her.

"Have they found Axel yet?" Riku asked and I looked at him. "Axel's gone?"

He nodded his head. "Yeah. He never came back after Saix retreated."

Yuffie shook her head. "No sign of him but I wouldn't worry about it. Axel can handle himself on his own."

The door burst open and Tifa stuck her head in. "They're back!"

"What! Already?! Geez can't they give us a break?! Yuffie shouted.

Tifa shrugged. "Guess not. That Saix guy is leading them though."

I stood when heard this, new strength filling me as I summoned the Worldblade. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go kick his ass!" I cried enthusiastically. They nodded and we headed out the door, Riku staying close to me.

--

A/N: They kissed! Everyone jump up and cheer! (clears throat) Anyway. How did ya like it? And how many of you expected Jessica to show up as an enemy? Ok i have the rest of the story written i just have to type it all up and i have a few sequal one-shots in mind too so if you guys want me to write them review and let me know k? See ya later amegos!


	7. Loss Of A Friend

Chapter 7

As soon as we were out the door the nobodies appeared. I ran through them, swinging my blade as I went. We ran through the city streets, destroying any creature that got in the way, trying to reach the rest of the group at the castle postern.

Riku stayed by my side the whole way.

As we reached our friends someone appeared next to me and grabbed me, twisting my arms behind my back hard. I cried out and Riku reached for me but a boot-clad foot collided with his chest from behind me and he fell back. I looked to see a raven haired man with violet eyes smirking and I struggled, causing him to tighten his hold painfully.

"Let her go!" Riku shouted angrily, starting towards us again.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." My captor said and I felt cool metal at my throat. Riku stopped his advance, rage evident on his face. "Saix found a use for her and wants her alive but don't think I'll hesitate to kill her if you come any closer." The blade punctured my skin lightly and I winced, feeling a small trail of blood roll down my neck.

I locked eyes with Riku then something impacted with the back of my head. "Sarah!" I heard Riku shout before my world went black.

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0

_Normal view_

"No!" Riku reached the portal just as it closed. He yelled in anger, slamming Way To Dawn into the ground. Sora and Kairi walked over and placed comforting hands on his shoulders.

"Where's Saix?" Riku growled.

"Gone." Sora answered.

Riku spotted something glittering on the ground and walked over, kneeling down to pick it up. It was Sarah's silver heart locket, the chain had snapped when Xaldin had grabbed her. He knew it was special to her. She had told him the day after they came here that she felt someone special had given it to her and she felt bad because she couldn't remember who. There was a picture of a boy around the same age as her inside but the picture still didn't bring back her memories. He stared at the locket for a minute then closed his fist around it. "I'm going after her." He said, straightening up. "Mickey, I need to use your Gummi Ship." The mouse king nodded and they hurried to the ship, ready to do everything it took to save their friend.

0

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_OC view_

I groaned and opened my eyes. I cast my eyes around. I was in what looked like a dungeon cell, a purple one? _Ok that's weird. _There was a dull throb in my left wrist and my head and as I tried to sit up a sharp pain shot through my arm and I cried out. Dizziness hit me and I stayed on the floor till it passed. I used my right hand to sit up and examined my wrist. It was obviously broken or at least fractured.

I looked around. This was a strange cell. Most dungeons I'd ever heard of were dark, dingy, and rat infested but this one was surprisingly clean, but I'd never heard of a purple one before.

I leaned back against the wall and sighed, trying to distract my mind from the pain in my wrist. I rubbed t he back of my head, feeling the lump that had formed, giving me a headache.

The door to my cell opened and I shot to my feet, swaying a little as Saix entered. I growled and tried to summon my Worldblade. Nothing happened. Saix chuckled, "It is futile. There is a spell around you that prevents you from summoning your Worldblade."

I glared at him. "What do you want with me?"

"Your cooperation. I know Axel told you about our creature friend downstairs. I want your help in controlling it."

"Axel said it was too powerful to control."

He smirked. "Not for the Worldblade wielder."

I snorted. "Like I'd ever help scumbags like you, get real."

His smirk widened. "Let me show you what will happen if you don't cooperate." He stepped aside and Xaldin walked in, throwing a limp, cloaked figure into the cell which landed with a sickening thud at my feet.

My eyes widened. "Axel!" I gasped, falling to my knees beside his beaten and bloody form and lifting his head into my arms, placing my good hand to his neck. His pulse was faint and erratic. "What did you do to him?!" I shouted angrily at the two smirking nobodies.

"Nothing more than the traitor deserved." Xaldin chuckled.

"So this is what you'll do if I don't help you?"

Saix nodded. "Well guess what. I don't care. Do your worst, I'm not scared of you."

Saix laughed. "You misunderstand. I never said this would happen to you. Would you be so uncooperative if it was your friends or your beloved Riku we were threatening?"

My eyes widened but I snorted. "Yeah right. Like Riku would ever be stupid enough to get captured by idiots like you." I looked more confidant than I sounded.

"We do not need to capture him. He is coming to us of his own free will. To rescue you. And he's bringing your friends with him."

I looked at the ground sadly. That sounded like Riku alright. Running head long into danger to save those he loves.

I looked at Axel and wiped some of the blood off his face gently. He cracked open his one eye that wasn't swollen shut and looked at me. "Don't…don't do it." He forced out, sounding so unlike the sarcastic Pyro I was used to, before closing his eyes once more. I sighed. If they could do this to Axel then there was a chance they could do the same to Riku. I couldn't let that happen. "What do I have to do?" I asked in a defeated voice.

"That's a good girl. I knew you'd see things our way." Saix said, grabbing my arm and pulling me to my feet. I hissed in pain when the movement sent a jolt of pain up my arm. He marched me to the door and looked at Xaldin. "Finish him."

Xaldin smirked, nodding and summoning one of his spears.

"Don't!" I struggled but Saix's grip tightened, holding me back. "Don't kill him!"

"Give us one good reason why we shouldn't." I could tell Saix was enjoying this.

"Because you have what you want! You don't need to kill him, just let him go!" Xaldin walked up to Axel. "Please I'll do whatever you want! Please! You've punished him enough!" Tears came to my eyes, I knew they weren't gonna give in.

Saix shook his head, smiling evilly. "He betrayed us. The punishment is death." He nodded to Xaldin. Axel's one eye opened and locked onto me as Xaldin brought his spear up. I kept my eyes on his and he managed to shoot me one last cocky smirk before the spear was brought down and I turned away as he was pierced through, the fire leaving his eyes. I fell to my knees, tears falling.

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_Gummi Ship_

Riku's eyes widened and he made a small noise in surprise.

"What is it Riku?" Kairi asked in concern.

"Something's wrong. Something's happened."

"How do you know?" Mickey asked.

Riku shook his head. "I don't know. I just feel it." He looked at Sora who was piloting the ship. "Sora! How much longer?"

"We're almost there."

Riku nodded. "We have to hurry."

A/N: Sorry for the late update guys. I've been sick in bed and it sucks but now I'm a hundred percent so I should be able to update more. Also I finished my FF VII story so I have more time to put towards this one. I'm sorry I killed Axel but I had planned on killing him before I had even started writing the story so, sorry, I do feel bad though. I mean the poor guy has died twice now. Please no hate mail ok?


	8. The Creature

Chapter 8

I cried silently as Saix escorted me downstairs. I had gotten to know Axel pretty well over the last few days. We hadn't been best buds or anything but we were more than acquaintances, just friends I guess. We'd had a strange friendship, making smart comments and insults and being sarcastic to one another, but a friendship nonetheless.

I thought back to a conversation we'd had the day after arriving in Radiant Garden.

FLASHBACK

We were taking a break from the restoration and I had decided to spend my free time in the cool Bailey while Sora and Riku showed off- I mean sparred- outside with Kairi watching.

When I walked in I noticed a certain Pyro was already inside, leaning against the wall. "Hey." I greeted, sitting down and leaning against the wall across from him.

We sat in silence, listening to the sounds of clashing blades outside.

"Hey Axel?" He looked up at me. "Why did you betray the Organization? I understand why you helped Sora out that day with the nobodies, because of Roxas, but why did you leave in the first place?"

He shrugged. "Same reason I guess. Roxas left. He was the only one I liked enough to call a friend. The Organization just wasn't the same with Roxas gone."

"So that's why you left? Because Roxas did?" He nodded.

"You sure you don't have a heart?" I asked skeptically.

His eyebrows rose. "Yeah, I'm sure. Why?"

I shrugged. "It's just that you seem to care a lot about Roxas. If you don't have a heart, how can you care?"

He shook his head. "It's not real. It's just a shadow of an emotion my other half had."

"That's not what I think."

"Oh? And what's your theory great Worldblade master?" He asked sarcastically.

"I think you have part of a heart." I held up a hand to keep him from interrupting. "Think about it. You care about Roxas despite being a nobody. And from what Riku told me, Roxas had feelings as well. What if when your other was turned into a heartless you kept part of the heart?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah right. Like that would happen. The chances of that actually happening are a million to one."

"Then I guess you and Roxas got the one."

He looked at me like I was crazy. "It makes no sense."

"Yeah well, neither do heartless shells walking around. I mean seriously, how can you get up and walk around without a heart? Guess some things in the universe just don't make sense."

Axel chuckled. "You remind me of Roxas when you say that. He used to say crazy crap like that all the time."

"Well maybe I can be a friend like he was too." I stood up. "So what do you say? Friends?" I held out my hand. He studied me for a moment before sighing. "Oh what the hell." He clasped my hand and we shook on it.

END FLASHBACK

That was our only civilized conversation. After that we just sorta bugged each other.

"You really should stop the tears, they don't suit you." Saix said from next to me.

I glared at him hatefully. "It's none of your business what I do or don't do." I snapped.

He smirked. "Now is that any way to talk to someone who is just trying to make conversation? Really, you act like you just lost a dear friend."

My control snapped and I swung at him with all my strength. He caught my fist easily, his foot coming out of nowhere and kicking me into a wall, knocking the air from my lungs and sending a jolt of pain up my arm.

He knelt in front of me as I tried to catch my breath, glaring at him. He grasped my chin and held it firmly in place and I felt sick just having him touching me. "Keep this up and you'll lose someone even more dear to you." He warned in a dangerously threatening voice.

He dragged me roughly to my feet and we continued on.

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_Normal view_

"She's probably in the dungeons!" Kairi called as they ran through The Castle That Never Was. "That's where Saix kept me when they were trying to get to Sora!"

Riku nodded, leading the group on. Since the Gummi ship couldn't hold them all and Radiant Garden needed them Leon and the Radiant Garden gang stayed behind but made Riku swear that he'd contact them as soon as they found Sarah. "She's our friend and we care about her too." Yuffie had said as they took off.

They reached the dungeons and ran from cell to cell, looking through the bars. Kairi had run ahead and gasped when she looked into the cell at the end of the hall. "Axel!"

She pushed open the door and ran inside as the others ran down the hall towards them.

She knelt by the pyro's side and placed a hand to her mouth at the gaping hole in his chest. She placed a shaky hand to his neck then after a moment she let it fall, closing her eyes and bowing her head.

"Is he ok?" She looked up at Riku and shook her head. "He's…he's dead." She said quietly.

"He can't be." Sora said. "His body is still here. If he had died his body would have returned to darkness."

Kairi shook her head. "He's gone Sora."

"By my hand." A dark voice chuckled, echoing around the room. Xaldin and Jessy appeared in front of them.

Kairi shot to her feet, her blade appearing in her hand.

"Where's Sarah!" Riku demanded, his weapon also coming to his hand.

Xaldin laughed. "Don't worry about her, Saix will take good care of her. You should be more worried about yourself." He summoned his spears while Jess summoned her blade. "She was most cooperative when we threatened to kill you like Axel." He told Riku. "Imagine her disappointment when I kill you anyway." He leapt at Riku. Sora knocked Riku away and blocked the spears. "Riku! You go after Sarah! We'll take care of these two!"

Riku nodded, running out of the room.

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_OC view_

Saix opened the large door and we walked inside.

The large room was lit dimly with a fiery glow but I couldn't find the source of the light. A deep growl echoed around the room and two glowing red, reptilian eyes stared at us from the darkest chamber.

Saix shoved me forward and I glared at him before walking slowly towards the eyes. The creature growled again and I stopped as its head appeared out of the shadows. It was a dragon! That was the last thing I expected when Axel told me about it. This dragon looked like it was made entirely of shadow. I took a step closer and the dragon retreated away from me as if frightened, disappearing into the shadows once more.

_Its scared of me? _I walked closer and held out my hand. Something told me this dragon wasn't a danger to me, that he wouldn't hurt me. "Come on. I won't hurt you." Its head appeared again and it eyed me warily before stretching its neck until its nose touched the palm of my hand. I expected my hand to go right through it but to my surprise it was solid. All at once I was hit with a torrent of emotions. Anger, fright, sadness and hatred. A deep rumbling voice filled my head.

**_No hurt. Want go home. No control. _**The dragon said in my mind and I felt pity towards it. This creature wasn't evil, just scared. He just wanted to go home.

I stroked his head, scratching in between his horns. I don't know how I knew it was male, I just did. He closed his eyes halfway, as if enjoying the attention.

I turned to Saix. "He doesn't want to be controlled. He just wants to go home."

"I could care less what it wants. It belongs to us now and will do as we say."

I narrowed my eyes. "I will not force him to help you. He's a living thing not something you can claim for your own!"

Saix summoned his weapon. "You will do as you're told or you will suffer the consequences."

"I will not!" I shouted.

Saix smirked. "Pity. I thought you cared more about Riku."

"I care more about Riku than you'll ever know." I said, my voice low and angry. "And I know he wouldn't want me to help you cause destruction for his sake."

I cast my eyes to the silver haired boy who had just arrived and was standing in the doorway, blade in hand.

Saix turned and glared at Riku before spinning back around and charging me. the spell was still upon me and I couldn't summon my blade. I planted my feet and stood my ground, waiting for the impact.

As Saix lifted his weapon a black tail zoomed through the air, smashing into him and sending him flying.

I looked over and smiled, giving the dragon a grateful pat on the neck. The dragon roared and ran at Saix, who was starting to get to his feet. I watched unblinking as the mighty creature pinned Saix to the ground, his talons digging deep into flesh. I finally turned my head when the dragon began ripping him apart. Saix gave an agonizing scream which died into a sickening, gurgling sound. The nobodie's body faded into nonexistence and the dragon turned its gaze to Riku, eyeing his blade before charging him. I bolted in front of him, putting myself between him and Riku, holding up my arms.

The dragon halted, skidding a little to keep from running into me. "It's ok my friend." I assured him, scratching his head which he nudged me with. "He will not harm you or me. He's a friend." I turned and jumped into Riku's open arms, burying my face in his neck as tears came to my eyes, ignoring the throbbing in my wrist.

"I'm so glad you're safe." He whispered as he hugged me to him tightly, my feet leaving the ground.

"Same here." I said tearily.

He placed me back on my feet and leaned his head down, our lips meeting in a kiss that took my breath away.

"I heard what you said." He said as we broke apart. "You were right. I would never want you to do something like that for my sake."

"Yeah I know. And you'd probably blame yourself for it too."

The dragon nudged my back and I turned as his deep rumbling voice filled my head again. **_Captor gone. Go home now?_**

"Yes. I will send you home, but first I'd like to know your name."

_**Nightshade.**_

"Nightshade. Ok then Nightshade just hold on while I try and figure out how to open the door." I summoned the Worldblade. Now that Saix was gone, the spell was lifted.

Speeded footsteps reached our ears and we turned to the doorway as Sora, Kairi and the others appeared with Jessy over Sora's shoulder.

"Jessy!" I ran over as Sora placed her on the ground against the wall.

"She's alright. She's just knocked out, courtesy of Kairi." Sora pointed over his shoulder at Kairi.

Jessy had a few bruises and a large lump on her head, that and the wound Riku had given her were the only injuries she had.

I nodded and turned back to Nightshade.

"And Xaldin?" Riku asked.

"Gone. And we couldn't bring Axel." Kairi said sadly.

I spun to face her. "He's still alive?!"

She shook her head. "No. But his body is still here."

I sighed and my shoulders slumped. But then I gave a small smile. "So I was right. You did have part of a heart." I muttered to the now dead pyro.

Riku placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and I gave him a grateful smile. I turned to Nightshade and held my blade in front of me, closing my eyes and concentrating all my power on opening the door. A bright glow emanated from the blade's tip but that was it. I sighed.

Way To Dawn crossed over my blade and I looked over at Riku. "The Worldblade, like the Keyblade, draws power from its wielder. The stronger the wielder the stronger the blade. Since you're tired and weak from all that's happened the blade isn't strong enough to open the door." He held his free hand out to me. "Use strength from me to open the door."

I nodded, grasping his hand so we both held the Worldblade. I closed my eyes again, this time concentrating on both my power and Riku's. The blade glowed and a beam of both light and darkness shot from my blade. A door materialized in front of us and it opened to reveal a dark shore and sea.

Nightshade roared happily and charged through the door, unfurling his wings. He took off and flew circles in the sky, all the while his voice kept saying **_home _**in my head.

I smiled as I watched. Riku came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me back against him as he too watched the happy dragon. I rested my head back against his chest and relaxed my hands on his arms as Nightshade came in for a landing.

Nightshade walked over and nudged me with such force that it nearly knocked me and Riku to the ground. I laughed, lifting my good hand to the space between his horns and giving him one last scratch. "You behave now." I said as he turned and walked through the door, a **_thank you _**filling my head.

I grasped Riku's hand again and held out the Worldblade. The beam shot again and the door closed and disappeared.

"So it's over? We can go home?" Sora asked from behind us and I nodded.

Suddenly a blinding light appeared and we covered our eyes. When I uncovered mine and they had adjusted I gasped.

A/N: And I give you a cliff hanger. Ok so before I start getting messages and stuff about the whole Axel got a heart thing, let me explain. In KH2 Axel disappeared after helping Sora correct? Well if you would all recall he said "That's what happens when you put your whole being into an attack" So I think that's why he disappeared, because he put his whole being into that attack and it literally destroyed him. Now I know he probably doesn't have a heart in the game but this is fanfiction and I get to do whatever I want so even if it didn't make sense I can still do it hee hee.


	9. Decision

Chapter 9: Decision

_Previously_

_Suddenly a blinding light appeared and I covered my eyes. When I uncovered them and they had adjusted I gasped._

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_0_

A small fairy-like creature floated in front of us. It looked to be made of swirling shades of light and darkness.

'**_You have done well Worldblade master.' _**It said and I recognized the voice from Destiny Islands when I first got the Worldblade.

"Who are you?"

'**_I am the voice of the Worldblade, the spirit if you will. I am allowing my voice to be heard by all in this room and not just you.' _**It indicated around the room. '**_You have all done well.'_**

It eyed me. **_'For what you've done, I grant you two rewards. The first is your lost memories.' _**Its hand came down on my head and I gasped as an explosion of images flashed through my mind. I fell back and Riku caught me, holding me against him as the images kept coming. My mom and dad. My overprotective brother.

I clenched my eyes shut, holding Riku's jacket tightly in my fist. Finally the images stopped and I relaxed, breathing heavily as if I had run a mile.

Riku looked down at me with concern. "I'm alright." I whispered then I smiled at him. "I remember. I remember everything." I looked around. "This world, your world, everything. It isn't supposed to exist." I focused my loving gaze on Riku. "But I'm so glad it does."

'**_Now for your second reward.' _**The fairy continued and all eyes turned to him. **_'I offer you a choice. You can either stay here and live with your friends or you can return home and pretend nothing has happened.'_**

I looked down to the ground. How could I just go back? How could I just go back and pretend nothing had happened? As if sensing my thoughts the fairy answered, **_'Your memories and those of your friends will be altered and it will be as if nothing had happened. If you chose to stay then the memories of your friends and family in your world will be altered, it will be as if you never existed.'_**

I looked at Riku then at Sora and the others before looking back to the fairy. "Do I…do I have to decide now?"

The fairy shook its head. **_'No. I will give you time to think it over. Let me transport you away from this place.'_**

"Wait! What about Axel?!" Kairi asked.

'**_Rest assured that the body of your friend will leave this place as well.' _**The fairy assured her then it raised its arms.

There was a blinding flash and I looked around. Everything was white. Riku was still right next to me but sadness filled his eyes. I touched his arm and his gaze locked onto me. He gave me a small, reassuring smile.

A warm feeling in my wrist attracted my attention and I looked down to see it shrouded in green light as it healed.

The white faded and I looked around. We were back in Radiant Garden. Everyone else had arrived too, including Jessy and Axel.

I looked away from the pyro's body and buried my face in Riku's chest, trying to rid my mind of the images from Axel's last moments of life.

Riku wrapped his arms around me and led me away from the sight, nodding to Sora and Kairi.

"They made me watch him die." I said quietly as we headed for our spot on the roof. "I was standing there for his lat moments of life and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't stop them." Tears rolled down my cheeks as Riku used an Aero spell to get us on the roof.

"Don't go turning into me now." He said as we sat down. "It wasn't your fault. You did everything you could." He tightened his hold around me, pulling me into his lap. I relaxed against him, closing my eyes at this feeling of safety.

We sat there in silence for a few minutes until Riku broke the silence. "What are you going to do?"

I opened my eyes and sighed. "I don't know. I want to stay here but… my family is on my world."

"I think you should go." He said sadly.

My eyes widened and I pulled from him a bit, looking into his eyes. "W-what?! Why?!"

"You have family there and friends that need you. You belong in that world. Not here." He grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together.

"So…you want me to go." I whispered.

"No! Of course not! I love you and I want you to stay but…this isn't your world." He said the last bit softly.

"But my place **is **here. Here with you." I looked at him with pleading eyes. "If I leave you'll forget me. I don't want you to forget me and I don't want to forget you." More tears rolled down my cheeks as I buried my face in his shoulder.

He grasped my chin gently and turned my head to face him.

"I could never, EVER forget you. I don't care what that thing says about altering my memories. I couldn't forget you even if I wanted to."

I sniffled. "Promise?"

He nodded. "Promise."

"Will you do me one last favor?" I asked him and he nodded. "Anything."

"Kiss me."

He smiled and our lips met. I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. We stayed that way for a good two minutes before we finally broke apart. I leaned against him. "Yeah. That was definitely a kiss I couldn't forget." I whispered against his chest.

He said nothing, just tightened his hold.

After a while he finally said, "You should go tell that thing your decision."

"Just wait." I replied, hugging him closer. "Let me have this one last moment with you."

He nodded, kissing the top of my head. I knew why he was urging me to go. The longer I stayed the harder it would be for both of us to let go.

We stood there a little longer then finally climbed down from the building.

We walked to Merlin's, with me leaning into Riku's embrace the whole way.

The fairy and the others were already there waiting.

Riku stopped and I gave his hand a comforting squeeze as I left his warm arms, walking to the fairy. **_'Have you made your decision?' _**It asked and Riku, not being able to watch, walked away. At the sign of his tearful eyes and pained face my heart panged. As he walked out of sight I answered.

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_Normal view_

As Riku walked towards the Bailey there was a blinding flash and he closed his eyes. _I'll never see her again. _He thought sadly, walking slowly into the Bailey.

A/N: The End. : ) Just kidding. There is one more chap to go and I'm sorry this one isn't really long but it was good right? Sad but good?


	10. The End

Chapter 10

_Normal view_

Riku gazed out at the canyons surrounding Radiant Garden, tears still rolling down his cheeks, his face full of misery.

He heard footsteps behind him. "Go away." He told whoever it was, not even caring. "I don't want to talk about it." He didn't hear them leave but it didn't sound like they were coming any closer either.

A minute later slim arms wrapped around his neck from behind and a head rested in the crook of his neck.

He turned to see who it was and his eyes went wide, a smile brightening his face.

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_OC view_

"I'm staying."

The fairy nodded. **_'Then I will take your friend home.' _**It waved its arms and Jessy floated in the air, still unconscious.

"What a sec." I ran over to Jessy and pulled off my bracelet, fastening it around her wrist. _With any luck she'll keep a small shred of her memory. _I stepped back and nodded.

'_**I wish you luck in your new life.'**_

Then there was a flash and he and Jessy were gone.

I turned and smiled at all my friends. I was instantly squashed as everyone tried to hug me at once. I laughed and wiggled free. "Where'd Riku go?"

"He headed towards the Bailey." Sora said, pointing in the direction Riku had taken.

"Go to him." Kairi said smiling.

I took off at a run, going as fast as my feet could carry me.

I reached the Bailey and stopped to catch my breath before walking inside.

Riku sat there in the middle of the stone floor, looking through the Bailey's window-like opening. His tear stained face filled with misery.

I walked closer. "Go away." He said without turning around. "I don't want to talk about it."

I walked silently closer and knelt behind him, wrapping my arms around his neck and resting my head on his shoulder.

He looked at me and his eyes widened, a smile lighting his face.

"I thought I was needed more here." I whispered.

He unwound my arms from his neck and pulled my from his back to his front.

He placed a hand to the side of my face, looking like he expected me to disappear at any moment.

"I'm staying." I reassured him. "I'm staying here with you… where I belong." His lips smashed into mine and I smiled, returning the gesture forcefully.

"I love you." He whispered lovingly as the kiss broke.

"I love you too and I always will."

We both smiled at each other before our lips met again.

A/N: This has got to be the shortest chapter I have ever written in all my sixteen years of life. Oh well, it was still good right? I got so tired of all these fanfics where the OC falls in love with one of the characters and then leaves them high and dry to return to their own world so I wrote a good ending. There is a sequel one-shot to this story already written so I'll type that up and hopefully have it up within a week. I'll be busy this weekend (Florida State Fair!) but I'll do my best. Thanks to all my reviewers, you all get cyber hugs.


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